In ? I Trust

Last Thursday I had the opportunity to join the outreach team that is here from South Africa during their visit to the hospital in town. We went to pray over and be an encouragement to the patients who were there. The hospital, as you can imagine, is very different from the ones we are used to in America. People do not have privacy but are placed side by side on the beds that are lined up against the wall. Some patients were sleeping on mattresses on the floor. We broke up into teams and visited the different wards going from bed to bed just talking and praying with the the people. Some looked pretty miserable and I was sad when I tried to imagine how I would feel if I were in their position. Here in the Kabwe hospital, the comfort and the resources are limited and I realized how much trust I have in our hospitals and doctors at home.

As I was driving back with the leaders of the team I was asked how the visit went. I told him it was depressing but a good experience. I mentioned how it seemed like there was little hope in the place. He asked me if it was hopeless. I replied that no it wasn't and he went on to say that in Africa they don't have as many resources and material things so one has to trust in God. This hit me really hard because it became more clear to me how much I put my trust in things. This conversation that I had began to change how I looked at certain places and situations in Zambia. It reminded me that even in the poorest places God is working and that just because some people don't have money, medicine, enough food, and comfort, does not mean that there is no hope. My hope and trust should be in God, not so much in things. God's ways are higher than our ways and he can take care of people whether they seem to live in desperate situations or in nice comfortable houses. Either way, we should be putting our trust in Him and realize that everything we have is from Him. This seems like an obvious thing to learn but it really became more real to me after the visit to the hospital and after the conversation that challenged me to consider what I was actually putting my trust in.